| Diary
April
Zanzibar, Tanzania 2004-04-25 16:38
Written 14th April 2004
Jambo!
We are now on the tropical island Zanzibar. And Zanzibar is what you'll probably find if you look up the word paradise in your dictionary. Now we are talking white, white beaches, crystal clear water and palm trees just about everywhere. For the past week we have done some serious work on our tans, snorkeled amongst coral reefs, turtles and dolphins, drunk a whole lot of beer. Could life get much better?
Getting to Zanzibar did however turn out to be everything but a picnic. When we arrived at the ferry terminal we were told that since our motorbike was the only vehicle of the day they weren't, because of harbor fees and etc., going bring the ferry into the shore and pull dawn the ramp. Our two options were to either wait in Dar for two days, until the next cargo ferry would depart, or to find a solution. We decided to go for option number two, to find a solution. During our six months in Africa we have learned a lot of things, and that absolutely everything is possible is one of them. So what we did is that we collected everything that we could find in the harbor, some old loading pallets and a rusty land way, and then we, with the help of some strong locals, built our own ramp and practically speaking carried/shuffled the bike from the dock and into the ferry.
When we finally arrived in Zanzibar we got a warm welcome from Helena's former neighbors (from Gavle), Soren and Monique, that are now working and living in Zanzibar's "capital" Stone town. After a couple of days in the charming city Stone town, known for its labyrinth alleys, we got together with our new friends Anna and Andy and headed to Zanzibar's most northern village Nungwi, where you'll find some of the nicest beaches in Zanzibar. And wow, it was nice there. We ended up spending eight(!) days in this paradise, just lazing on the beach and admiring the beauty of the place.
One day in Nungwi we met Ross (or actually Andy and Anna met him watching Rugby), a South African who has been sailing from SA to Tanzania. And before we knew it we were on his yacht sailing back to Stone town, a really funny and different experience.
After a lot of sun and relaxation on Zanzibar we are now rested and ready for new adventures. Sad to say our Honda Africa Twin is not feeling the same. The gear, chain and the back tire are really worn and we desperately need some new spares. We were a bit dejected at first, since it's kind of impossible to find spare parts for motorbikes bigger than 250 CC in this part of the world. But after a phone call to our loyal sponsor Touringbutiken in Sweden (www.touring.se) our problems are solved. Touringbutiken has now sent us an "emergency kit" (gear, chain, back tire and inner tube) to Zanzibar. Thank you so much Goran and everybody else at Touringbutiken!!!
Waiting for our "emergency kit" we are today going leave the bike behind and take the ferry back to Dar Es Salaam and from there, together with Anna and Andy in their Land Rover, head to one of Africa's most famous national parks, Serengeti. After a couple of days amongst lions, rhinos, hippos and other wild mammals we are taking the bus to Nairobi, where we are going to visit our sponsor child, Robe. Nairobi, also called Nai-Robbery, is one of the most dangerous cities in the world and therefore we feel like it's a good idea to go there without valuables like the bike and our computer. It'll be a bit strange though, to leave the bike...
See you next week!
Happy Eastern!
Helena and Daniel
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| Everything is possible!!! |
Common sight in Zanzibar |
White beaches and crystal clear water |
Dar es Salaam 2004-04-06 8:23
Hi there!
We were just looking through the statistics of this website realising that close to 100 people a day are following our trip. We are so happy, proud and grateful for this incredible response. Thank you so much!!!
This week we have been travelling with the South African /English couple Andy and Anna (the couple in the Land Rover that helped us with the flat tyre last week) plus their two hitchhikers Phil and Daniel from Australia respectively Switzerland. This is the first time we have been travelling with somebody since Max from Holland (through Mauritania, Senegal and Gambia) so it’s been really nice.
After our “holiday” in Malawi we steered north to Livingstonia. We had read in the Lonely Planet that this small town, which was founded by Scottish missionaries in the late 1800’s century, is situated on the top of a mountain and has a superb view. Somehow we however missed the part about the really, steep, winding and rocky road to Livingstonia, only suitable for four-wheel drivers, and almost impassable after rain.
We almost lost our chins when we saw the turn-off sign to Livingstonia (see picture number 1) For sure, we have been driving on “roads” that are hundred times worse. But since the roads in Malawi, generally speaking, are really good and since we really thought that this day was going to be an easy “asphalt day”, we were really caught by surprise. And it looked so funny; that big, massive sign for this small and ridiculous dirt road. Getting up to Livingstonia wasn’t a problem though. Sure, Helena was screaming like bloody hell all the way up the mountain and the bike had to work pretty hard, but Daniel he was laughing and just opened the damper.
We are glad that we went to Livingstonia because it’s a definitely a special small town, very peaceful, cosy and atmospheric. On Sunday morning we did what everybody in Livingstonia do, we went to church. And this church service turned out to be very entertaining. The priest had so much empathy and the choir was really impressing.
The night before we were planning to leave Livingstonia it of course started to rain heavily. When we woke up on Monday morning the view had been eaten by a thick cloud of fog and the roads had turned into mud. We instantly realised that it would be impossible to be two on the bike down the mountain and Helena therefore decided to walk down (accompanied by Anna and Switzerland- Daniel that wanted to make the Land Rover less heavy), a pretty nice morning exercise that took two and a half hour. And Daniel, he wasn’t laughing as much going down the mountain as he did going up. Mud, mud and more mud, Daniel was struggling quite a lot. At one stage the front tyre wasn’t even moving because of all the mud that was stuck under the mudguard. After a lot of sweat and a couple of falls Daniel was finally back on the “mainland”.
From Livingstonia we went straight to Tanzania and now we are staying in the biggest city of the country, Dar es Salaam (also called Dar). The road from the border to here has been marvellous. Just like in Zambia and Malawi the surroundings are really green, fresh and unspoiled, but here it’s also hilly. Yesterday, when we were heading to Dar, the road suddenly went through a national park (usually we don’t get in to parks with the bike) and we passed a lot of elephants, wilder beasts, warthogs, baboons and antelopes, so exciting!!!
Our first impression of Dar wasn’t god at all, so dirty, so stressful and so un-charming. During our first minutes in this big city we were also unlucky enough to run into the most terrifying people that dragged us in different directions trying to “help” us with this and that. Since our first minutes however it seems like all the hassling and stress is blown away and we kind of like it here. It’s not very common to feel safe when you’re walking around in an African big city by night, but in Dar you do. Tomorrow we are heading off to the paradise island Zanzibar!!! But you can read more about that next week.
The picture gallery has been updated with pictures from Zambia and Malawi!!!
Take care,
Helena and Daniel
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| The turn-off sign to Livingstonia |
The superb view from the top |
On the way to Dar we went throug a national park |
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